Deck 5: How to Read and Write Research Reports

Question 1

The method section should contain enough information for

A) another experimenter to replicate the study.
B) the reader to have a general understanding of how the study was done.
C) the reader to have a vague idea of how the study was done.
D) someone to know exactly what statistical analyses were performed in the experiment.

Answer 1

another experimenter to replicate the study.

Question 2

Which section of the journal would you turn to if you wanted to know what variables were used in an experiment?

A) introduction
B) method
C) results
D) discussion

Answer 2

method

Question 3

Which of the following should NOT be included in the method section?

A) how the participants were selected
B) the instructions provided
C) the statistical design
D) the results of the statistical analysis

Answer 3

the results of the statistical analysis

Question 4

Which of the following would you be unlikely to find in the results section in a journal article?

A) graphs
B) summary tables
C) inferential statistics
D) raw data

Question 5

Which section of a journal article is the writer usually the most creative?

A) introduction
B) method
C) results
D) discussion.

Question 6

F(4, 60) = 15.10, p < .01 means that if the experiment were performed 100 times, the results would be similar in at least _________ cases.

A) 90
B) 95
C) 99
D) 100

Question 7

The __________ is a short paragraph that summarizes the key points of an article.

A) introduction
B) method section
C) results section
D) abstract

Question 8

In the results section, inferential statistics are presented to

A) summarize the data.
B) enable the reader to decide whether or not the data are reliable.
C) enable the reader to decide whether or not the data are important.
D) enable the author to demonstrate that his results actually tested the hypothesis.

Question 9

The careful writer of an article or report avoids language that is

A) sexist.
B) ambiguous.
C) suspenseful.
D) all of these.

Question 10

Which of the following would NOT be found in the methods section?

A) how many participants or subjects were used
B) how the participants or subjects were selected
C) where the participants or subjects came from
D) the individual responses of each participant

Question 11

A journal article title should be

A) long, describing the variables and the most significant result.
B) short, but giving some idea of the contents of the article.
C) composed of a title and several subtitles corresponding to the method, results, and discussion sections.
D) vague and uninformative.

Question 12

One might describe the apparatus used in an experiment in the

A) introduction.
B) method section.
C) results section.
D) discussion.

Question 13

The appropriate level of significance for the statistical analysis of a given experiment is determined by

A) the situation.
B) the number of participants in the study.
C) what everybody else does.
D) the particular journal.

Question 14

Theoretical conclusions are usually stated in the

A) introduction.
B) method section.
C) results section.
D) discussion.

Question 15

In general, use the past tense

A) in the review of studies in the introduction and in the method.
B) only in the method.
C) only in the introduction.
D) only in the results.

Question 16

The method section should contain

A) information about the participants.
B) a description of the apparatus used in the experiment.
C) the procedure of the experiment.
D) all of these

Question 17

Which of the following should be included in the introduction of a journal article?

A) the obtained results
B) the hypothesis to be tested
C) the experimental design
D) the apparatus used in the experiment

Question 18

In a manuscript or report, you should

A) indicate where the tables should be placed in the discussion.
B) place all tables on the same page, but place each figure on a separate page.
C) number each table consecutively, and place each table on a separate page.
D) avoid using tables or figures.

Question 19

Which of the following statements is NOT true of the reference section?

A) The reference section contains exact titles of articles.
B) Only articles cited in the text appear in the references.
C) The contents of the reference section can be informative about the merit of an article.
D) The reference section provides a complete bibliography on the topic of the report.

Question 20

The first part of a psychology article is

A)the heading introduction.
B)the title.
C)a brief summary of new findings.
D)the major result of the experiment.

Question 21

The running head appears at the _______ of each page of a published article.

A) top
B) bottom
C) center
D) bottom and center

Question 22

Usually, the abstract contains about

A) 25-50 words
B) 100-180 words
C) 250-300 words
D) 350+ words

Question 23

When writing a research report, the first step after coming up with an idea is usually

A) conducting a literature search.
B) obtaining funding.
C) seeking IRB approval.
D) composing an outline

Question 24

Psychology journals provide __________ titles of the referenced articles.

A) partial
B) abbreviated
C) alternative
D) full

Question 25

When writing a research report, it is best to

A) vary the words used to describe aspects of the method to keep the reader interested.
B) be consistent in the words used to describe aspects of the method to make the report as clear as possible.
C) avoid the use of technical terms that are familiar to other researchers.
D) avoid providing too many details of the method so that others cannot copy the research.

Question 26

The results section of a research report should include

A) details of the procedure used to collect the data.
B) the statistical analyses used to examine the data.
C) the individual data for each participant.
D) an interpretation of the results of the analysis.

Question 27

The cover page of the manuscript should include

A) the title.
B) the author's name.
C) the author's affiliation.
D) all of these.

Question 28

In the introduction of a research report,

A) prior research on the topic is reviewed.
B) details of the method used to do the study are reported.
C) statistical analyses of the data are reported.
D) interpretations of the results of the study are discussed.

Question 29

Which of the following information would be UNNECESSARY to report in a method section?

A) the number of participants
B) the procedure for data collection
C) an explanation for a commonly used experimental procedure
D) a description of the materials used

Question 30

Ordinarily, journal articles written in APA style contain headings for all of the major sections of a paper except the _________ section.

A) introduction
B) method
C) results
D) discussion

Question 31

When reading a research report, it is often helpful to

A) read the results section first.
B) skip over the introduction.
C) accept the interpretation of the results given by the authors without question.
D) try to design a study to address the hypothesis before reading the method section.

Question 32

The abstract should NOT include

A) a summary of the relevant literature.
B) the variables being manipulated.
C) a summary of the important findings.
D) a sentence discussing the author's interpretation of the results.

Question 33

Participants in an experiment are asked to decide as quickly as possible whether a briefly presented stimulus is or is not a word. This is called

A) a lexical decision task.
B) counterbalancing.
C) a practice effect.
D) a within-subjects design.

Question 34

When reading a research report, the critical reader will

A) not be concerned with the details of the method used.
B) accept the method used as adequate to address the hypothesis posed.
C) not consider alternative methods to test the hypothesis.
D) consider whether the method used can answer the question posed by the researcher.

Question 35

Which of the following sentences would NOT be expected in the method section of an APA style research report?

A) "There were 18 participants (8 Female, 10 Male) who received course credit for their participation."
B) "The dependent variable was recall measured by the number correct on a free recall test."
C) "A standardized test of state anxiety was used to ensure that the anxiety manipulation was successful."
D) "There was a significant difference between the groups in number correct on the recall test, t(40) = 2.33, p < .05."

Question 36

In the introduction, the review of the literature should include

A) only the most recent article related to the topic.
B) all of the literature that is related to the topic even if it is not directly pertinent.
C) a review of the most relevant literature on the topic.
D) only the literature published by the authors of the paper.

Question 37

The ________ appears at the top of each page of a published article.

A) subtitle
B) abstract
C) author note
D) running head

Question 38

A Reference section differs from a bibliography in that a Reference list includes

A) all relevant citations.
B) only articles cited in text.
C) only empirically proven research.
D) both scientific and non-scientific research.

Question 39

Which of the following is a useful source for finding recent articles that cite a key reference?

A) APA Publication Manual
B) Social Science Citation Index
C) a textbook
D) an older article on the same topic

Question 40

The authors of the text comment that the abstract should probably be written _____ although most authors usually write it _____.

A) last; first
B) second; first
C) first; last
D) first; second

Question 41

Titles and journal names of referenced articles are abbreviated in psychology journals.

Question 42

The abstract of a journal article is a short paragraph that summarizes the key points of an article.

Question 43

In a paper written for a class project, the APA manual states that figures and tables always be placed at the end of the paper.

Question 44

The title is too short to give one an idea of the contents of an article.

Question 45

The results section tells what happened in the experiment.

Question 46

Theoretical conclusions are stated in the results section.

Question 47

In a manuscript or journal article, the running head does not appear on the title page.

Question 48

The present tense should be used in the review of other studies in the introduction and in the method section.

Question 49

It is sometimes helpful to draw graphs from the data presented in tables.

Question 50

The discussion of a journal article is the least creative part of an article.

Question 51

Equipment used in an experiment to collect data (e.g., computer) is usually not mentioned in the method section of the manuscript.

Question 52

The abstract is placed at the end of a paper and consists only of methodological information.

Question 53

The method section can contain several subsections such as apparatus, procedure, and stimuli.

Question 54

The way a graph or figure is drawn can emphasize or conceal obtained results.

Question 55

The level of significance should always remain the same despite the situation.

Question 56

The rationale behind the predictions of an experiment can be found in the introduction section.

Question 57

The importance of the experimental findings is usually discussed in the discussion section.

Question 58

Only articles cited in the text of the paper should be included in the references.

Question 59

There is a fixed rule for setting an appropriate level of statistical significance.

Question 60

A person must have at least a master's degree to publish work in major psychology journals.

Question 61

The theoretical conclusions are presented in the introduction of a research report.

Question 62

What are the questions that a critical reader should ask when reading each section of a journal article?

Question 63

Read one of the articles cited in the chapter and answer each of the questions given in the Checklist for the Critical Reader.

Question 64

Explain the two main purposes of the method section of an empirical research report.

Question 65

What information should be included in the methods section of a research report? Why is an accurate, detailed methods section important?

Question 66

Discuss each of the major sections of a manuscript fit for publication. In what order do you think a manuscript should be written? Why?

Question 67

How would you go about learning what research has already been done on a topic of interest to you? Be specific about the sources you would use and the steps you would follow.

Question 68

Discuss what you think makes an article suitable for publication.

Question 69

What is one important reason to publicize the results of empirical research?

Question 70

You should not include too many details in your methods section, because other researchers who read it might steal your ideas.

Question 71

Data and phenomena are the singular forms of these nouns.

Question 72

It is important to be suspenseful when writing a research report so that the reader will remain intrigued.

Question 73

Describe the review process of manuscripts submitted for publication. Who reviews the manuscript? Why?

Question 74

What makes a good title for a research report? Why is a good title important?